"Kaplan-Meier Karate" - understanding survival data

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risto
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Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2016 2:28 am
Location: USA

"Kaplan-Meier Karate" - understanding survival data

Postby risto » Sun Apr 22, 2018 6:56 pm

Article by Darrel Francis, MD, April 03, 2018
"Event curves -- we've all seen them, but what do they really mean? What can you glean from their shape and their wiggliness?"

I found this very informative. Anyone researching information on prognosis or clinical trials should understand what these charts mean.
https://www.medpagetoday.com/publichealthpolicy/clinicaltrials/72122
DW Dx 7/15, 41 yo, st IV, 3+ liver mets: 11.3 cm, 7cm, 3cm. MSS.
KRAS, APC, SMAD4, TP53 mut.
7/15-10/15: FOLFOX+bev. x8
11/15-12/15: SIRT (Y90)
1/16: Toxic Hepatitis, chemo break
4/16: Liver resec. fail
5/16-7/16: FOLFIRI x6
8/16: Liver resec.
8/16-11/16: FOLFIRI x6
2/17: IMRT/Xeloda x25
4/17: LAR
6/17: CT: Progression. Peri, Lung, Liver mets. FOLFIRI x6
9/17: FOLFIRI+Bev x5.
11/17: CT: Stable. 5FU+bev. maintenance x5
1/18-2/18: Surgery for SBO
5/18: ascites, acute liver injury

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CRguy
Posts: 10473
Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:00 pm

Re: "Kaplan-Meier Karate" - understanding survival data

Postby CRguy » Sun Apr 22, 2018 10:43 pm

Respectfully :

Kaplan-Meier is a non-parametric stat discussion referable only within its OWN frame of reference.
This discussion has LESS than nothing to do with karate ( please read my bio. )
The quotes about "grasshopper" would refer to Kung Fu the old TV series based on Shaolin Kung Fu tradition ... NOT karate.
Darrel Francis, MD, is a cardiologist ... he should stick to cardiology ... BUTT would never be mine.

Like many putative, media savvy scientists, this person has tried to frame a legit discussion in a topical and colloquial manner.
He has failed ... he should stick to cardiology.

Understanding the meaning of statistical analysis is important.
I would argue this article's author does not meet that objective... JMO

YMMV

Cheers
CRguy
Caregiver x 4
Stage IV A rectal cancer/lung met
17 Year survivor
my life is an ongoing totally randomized UNcontrolled experiment with N=1 !
Review of my Journey so far

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JJH
Posts: 408
Joined: Mon Apr 24, 2017 7:26 am

Re: "Kaplan-Meier Karate" - understanding survival data

Postby JJH » Mon Apr 23, 2018 3:24 am

JJH wrote:A classic article on the topic of statistics and cancer is the one entitled, "The Median Isn't the Message" by Stephen Jay Gould: https://people.umass.edu/biep540w/pdf/Stephen%20Jay%20Gould.pdf. This article is worth reading in order to understand why we should not pay too much attention to survival statistics,

http://cancerguide.org/median_not_msg.html

If anyone is interested in other articles on survival statistics, they can start with this basic overview on Stephen Gould's website:

http://www.cancerguide.org/scurve_basic.html

But if you are looking for a more technical discussion of K-M curves within the specific context of oncology, you can go to some of the articles published more recently in the scientific literature, for example this one published in 2016:

An Introduction to Survival Statistics: Kaplan-Meier Analysis
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5045282/
"The darkest hour is just before the dawn" - Thomas Fuller (1650)
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